I
Face the heavy wooden door from the old house
to the direction of the rising sun and move on
from what is done and cannot be undone. Mirrors
must reflect the morning light and outdoor plants
—not the stubs of candles from last year’s feasts,
the cardboard boxes filled with broken electronics
or the moss-worn garden statues, grey and ruined
by the incessant rains, these sad errors of saints,
the fear of what is new and terrifyingly unfamiliar.
There is no testing the future with one naked toe
into the cold measures of foreseeing. It all flows
and follows the path of the waxing crescent moon
the uncertain rise of curling smoke of an incense
burning as a bird calls on starless night.
II
There is nothing wrong with following the customs
of your employers or following the magnetic stream
of their chi. Even if you do not have Chinese blood
there is no harm celebrating New Year in the middle
of February. After all, it is the month of red shirts
and red matted papers, all signed in glittery ink
for good love and good luck: gold for prosperity
and sweet scents for success. Orange citrus peels
and pineapple crown, chocolate coins, sticky
candies and stickier rice cake, all round fares
in the round wooden table for the red dragon
hungry, dancing around the bright sticky moon.
III
This is wind. This is northeast.
These stones sparkle underwater. This is a heavy door.
This is the weight of the past. This is the undulation
of bated breath before the black-red rooster crows.
This is a wheel of fortitude. These are copper coins.
This is a miniature fountain. This is gold. This is a pear.
This is the Buddha of Fortune with a dozen children
playing on the rolls of his belly. These are his fat arms.
This is water. This is the source of the drop. This is
a music box. This is an old photo. This is a good spot
for a koi pond. This is the weight of tomorrow. This is
the burden of the past in stones. This is a good home.
Jeffrey Javier graduated from the University of the Philippines Mindanao with a degree in BA English, major in Creative Writing. ““Feng Shui” was first published in SOFTBLOW, front page for October 2015.” The digital art illustration by Jun Cayas is part of the Visual Aspect for Kumbira! 2016.